Ratchet-type earring construction



i R. GOLDBERG ETAL RATCHET-TYPE EARRING CONSTRUCTION April 21, 1959Filed April 16, 1956 FIG. I.

, YINVENTORS. RUBIN GOLDBERG BY OSCAR BARANY.

ATT RNEY 4 2 w z w w m a 8 2 Q United States Patent RATCHET-TYPE EARRINGCONSTRUCTION Rubin Goldberg, Brooklyn, and Oscar Barany, New York, N.Y.

Application April 16, 1956, Serial No. 578,380

1 Claim. (Cl. 63-14) This invention relates to a ratchet-type earringconstruction.

The use of spring arms in engagement with a screw to provide acombination screw and ratchet construction is known to the art and animproved form of such construction is shown in our said copending patentapplication. The present invention relates mainly to said con structionas shown in our co-pending patent application and it is intended toimprove it by limiting the ratchet action to only one direction ofmovement of the screw longitudinally of itself and relative to thespring arms. In our said construction as disclosed in said co-pendingpatent application, the spring arms are adapted to flex sufliciently inboth directions to enable the screw to engage in ratchet action uponmovement in either direction longitudinally of itself.

It is accordingly the principal object of this invention to provide acombination screw and ratchet-type device for earrings and otherarticles of manufacture, wherein spring arms engage a screw to serve asa nut in mesh therewith, said spring arms being adapted to flex in onedirection to enable the screw to engage in ratchet action in onedirection longitudinally of itself, said spring arms being preventedfrom flexing in the opposite direction to the extent required to enablethe screw to engage in ratchet action in the opposite directionlongitudinally of itself.

As is shown in the drawings of this application, the spring arms arebowed at their outer ends where they are joined to a supporting plateand it is their bowed portions which enable them to flex in eitherdirection, depending upon the direction of longitudinal movement of thescrew. In the present case, however, a spacer is interposed between thespring arms and their supporting plate and said spacer provides apositive stop limiting the flexing movement of the spring arms andpreventing them from flexing toward their supporting plate beyond apredetermined spaced distance from said supporting plate. In short, saidspring arms are permitted to flex in the direction away from saidsupporting plate and they are permitted to flex back to their originalpositions adjacent the spacer, but they are not permitted by said spacerto flex beyond that point toward the supporting plate.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. l is a side view, partly in section, showing the ratchet-screwconstruction herein claimed as embodied in an earring.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a blank from which the supporting or hearingplate and the spring arms of said screw construction are made.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the spacer which is interposed between thespring aims and the supporting or hearing plate.

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing the spacer of Fig. 3 mounted upon thesupporting plate of Fig. 2 and the spring arms of Fig. 2 bowed over andacross said spacer for engagement with a screw.

Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary section showing a screw projectingthrough the supporting plate and spacer and engaged by the spring arms,and showing longitudinal movement of the screw in a ratchet action withsaid spring arms.

Fig. 7 is a similar view showing how the spacer prevents the spring armsto flex in the opposite direction to the extent necessary to permit thescrew to engage in ratchet movement in the opposite direction from thatshown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a plan view 'of a spacer shaped somewhat differently from thatshown in Fig. 3 but performing the same function.

Fig. 1 shows an earring 10 of generally conventional construction, savefor the screw ratchet mechanism therein shown. The earring consists ofan ornament 12 which also serves as a pad for the outside of the lobe ofan ear, a bowed wire 14 connected at one end to said ornament 12 and abearing shell 16 connected to the opposite end of said bowed wire. Thereis a central opening 18 in said. shell and it will be observed that ascrew 20 projectsthrough said opening in line with the ornament 12. At.the inner end of said screw is a pad 22 which engagesthe inner side ofthe lobe of the ear and said lobe is engaged in conventional mannerbetween said ornament 12- and said pad 22. At the outer end of screw 20is a knob- 24 which is knurled and may be rotated in eitherdirection torotate the screw.

Engaging the screw is a pair of spring arms 26 which serve as a nut forsaid screw so as to cause the screw to engage in longitudinal movementin either direction depending upon the direction of its rotary movement.Spring arms 26 engage the screw with their inner ends and theirthickness is such as to enable them to engage the screw between itsthreads.

The outer ends of the spring arms are bowed to form bights 28 which areintegrally connected with a supporting -or hearing plate 30. Thissupporting plate has a hole 32 formed therein centrally thereof and inregistration with the hole 18 in shell 16. The screw is thereby enabledto extend through both holes and to be supported both by the shell andsaid supporting plate in proper position relative to the ornament 12namely, in gener-,

ally perpendicular relation to its inner surface which serves as the padfor the outer portion of the ear lobe.

Spring arms 26, their bowed portions or bights 28 and the supportingplate 30 are all made from the blank 34 shown in Fig. 2. It will beobserved that said blank is generally disc-shaped, save for the armswhich radially project therefrom in diametrically opposite directions.These arms are tapered outwardly at their bases to form a relativelywide, tapered neck portion 36 which forms the bights 28 when the armsare bent over to their Fig. 5

positions. Adjacent these neck portions 36 are cutouts 38 which projectradially inwardly from the circumferential edge of the supporting plateportion 30. It is these cutouts which permit the spring arms, and moreparticularly the neck portions the circumferential edge of saidsupporting plate 30. This is clearly shown in Figs. 1, 4 and 5. Byreason of this condition, a clear and unencumbered marginal edge isprovided on said supporting plate 30.

It will now be observed that shell 16 is provided with a generallycylindrical side wall 40 which is integrally joined to an end wall 42(in which hole 18 is formed) and to an annular flange 44 which occupiesa plane gen erally parallel to the plane of the end wall 42. Said endwall 42 is tapered inwardly adjacent cylindrical wall 40 to form anannular shoulder 46 opposite flange 44. Said flange is itself bentinwardly toward the shoulder 46 to form an annular rib 48. It will beseen in Fig. 1,

36, to be bent radially inwardly of that the free. marginal edge of thesupporting plate 30 is disposed between annular shoulder 46 and annularrib 48 within cylindrical wall 40.

The final element of this assembly is spacer 50 which conforms,generally, in;shapie and size to the supporting plate 30 but is made ofconsiderably thicker stock.

Spacer 50 is provided with a central opening 52 corre-- sponding to thecentral opening 32 in the supporting plate 30. This, spacer isdisc-shaped save for a pair of cutouts 54 which are formed in itsperipheral edge in diametrically opposite locations. When spacer 50 isplaced'fiat against the supporting plate 30, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5,its peripheral edge coincides with the peripheral. edge of saidsupporting. plate and the neck portions 36 of spring arms 26 projectthrough cutouts 54 in; saidspacer. It will now be noted in Fig. 1 thatannularyrib. 48 clamps-said supporting plate 30 to the spacer 50 andcauses said spacer to be clamped against the annular shoulder 46. It isin this manner that the supporting plate 30. and its spring arms and thespacer 50 are locked in place within the shell 16.

Spacer 50 is of such thickness that when spring arms 26.are disposed ina common plane parallel to the plane of the supporting plate 30, asshown in Fig. 5, they bear flat against the spacer 50 which itself liesflat against said supporting plate. It is obvious, therefore, that saidspring arms cannot be made to flex toward the supportingiplate 30 beyondtheir Fig. 5 positions.

The spring arms 26 project radially inwardly into engagement with thescrew 20. Thisis shown in Figs. 1 and 7. The space between the springarms, when they are maintained in their Fig. 5 positions, is slightlysmaller than the diameter of the screw so that when said spring arms arein normal engagement with the screw, they are flexed in biased positionsas shown in Fig. 1.

Reference to Fig. 6 will show how the spring arms flex outwardly(rightwardly as shown in said Fig. 6) when the screw is movedlongitudinally of itself in the direction of the arrow, thereby'engagingin a ratchetaction with said spring arms. When an attempt is made withmoderate force and without rotating the screw to move said screwlongitudinally of itself in the opposite direction (leftwardly as viewedin Fig. 6), the flexed or biased spring arms will provide relativelystill opposition to such moderate force and the screw will be preventedfrom moving in said opposite direction. When, however, such attempt ismade with a relatively strong force, the result willfbe as shown in Fig.7 wherein the screw will draw the spring arms intoengagement with thespacer and no further flexing movement ofthe spring arms will bepermitted to take place. cannot take place between the screw and thespring arms in this direction. When it is desired to move the screwleftwardly beyond its Fig. 7 position, it is necessary to turn the screwin counter-clockwise or clockwise direction, depending upon how itsthreads are oriented, as indicated by the curved arrow. The spring armsnow function solely as a nut with respect to the screw.

Fig. 8 discloses. a slightly difierent form of spacer. The spacer 60shown in said Fig. 8 is provided with parallel sides 62 and 64 and withfour rounded corners 66, 68, Y70 and 72 respectively. Between corners 66and Consequently, a ratchet action 68 is a cutout 74' and a similarcutout 76 is provided between corners and 72,,bothcutouts correspondingto the cutouts 54 shown in Fig. 3. A central opening 78 is provided inspacer 60 to correspond to opening 52 in spacer 50. Spacer 60 is used inprecisely the same manner as spacer 50 above described. Its advantageover spacer 50 is that it may be punched out of a relatively narrowstrip of stock, the-width of said strip corresponding to the distancebetween parallel sides'62 and 64 of said spacer.

The foregoing is illustrative of preferred forms of this invention andit will be understood that these forms may be modified and other formsmay be provided within the broad spirit of 'the invention and the broadscope of the claim.

We claim:

A screw and nut earring construction comprising a U-shaped wire havingan ear-lobe engaging pad on the end of. one leg thereof, the end of theother leg of said U-shaped wire being rigid with a circular bearingshell disposed in parallel relation to the said other leg, said shellcomprising a circular end wall having a central aperture and acylindricalside wall, an annular shoulder at the junction of said endwall and-said sidewall, said' side wall being provided with a radiallyinwardly pro jecting flange including an:annular rib spaced from andopposing said shoulder, a generally circular supporting, plate disposedwithin said bearing shell with'the periphery thereof engaged by saidrib, said supporting plate having a central aperture'co-axial with saidaperture'in said end wall, an elongated spring arm projecting from saidsupporting plate at each end of a diameter thereof, said spring armsbeing spaced from the supporting plate and being normally in a planeparallel with" the supporting plate, semi-circular inwardly opening neckportions at the juncture of the arms and the supporting plate, agenerally circular spacing plate disposed between said supporting plateand said spring arms and adapted to engage said shoulder and having acentral aperture coaxially of said first and second mentioned apertures,said' spacing plate being provided with diametrically opposed notches inwhich said neck portions are disposed, a screw freely extending throughthe apertures in said end wall, said supporting plate and said spacingplate with the free end thereof disposed between said ear-lobe engagingpad and said end'wall'and having a second ear-lobe engaging pad'thereon,a manipulating knob on the opposite end of the screw, and the free endsof said arms engaging said screw.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

